Interior wall construction for buildings



Nov. 2, 1937. D. E: Ross ET AL 2,097,988

INTERIOR WALL cousmucmou FOR BUILDINGS File-d Jan. 13, 1934 I s' Sheets-Sheet 1 'Nov. 2,1937. D. E. ROSS ET AL 2,097,988

' I INTERIOR WALL CONSTRUCTION FdR BUILDINGS.

Filed Jan- '13. 1934 3 Sheet-Sheet 2 i q l4 7 2 Nov. 2, 1937; D. E. oss ET AL 2,097,988

INTERIOR WALL CONSTRUCTION FOR BUILDINGS Filed Jan. 13, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet s I 4 w w v gwuenio'cs W I V dbkwmo'd I lines the clip driven into the board. Fig. 8 is a Patented Nov. 2, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE steel framing of such buildings.

BUILD mes David E. Ross and Louis M. Alt, La Fayette, Ind., assignors to Rostone, Incorporated, La Fayette, Ind., a. corporation of Indiana Application January 13.193 1, Serial No. 706,548 '1': Claims.

7 This invention is an improvement in fabricated buildings of the type shown in the companion application of David E. Ross filed December '7, 1933, Serial No. 701,380, which matured in Patent #2,027,882 on Jan. 14, 1936, and provides novel means for and, method of attaching fabrlcated interior walls or wall covering to the The invention however is apiigilcable' to other types of buildings where it is de red to cover the interiors with fabricated material in a quick and eflicient durable manner.

The material used for the interior walls or finish thereof may be compo-board, .plaster board, or other material suitable for the purpose, and we will hereinafter refer to it as wall board meaning thereby to includeany material suitable or usable for such purposes. board is pre-fabricated into sheets or blocks of v The wall

suitable dimensions, according to the surface area to be covered thereby, and such wall board is' provided with novel attaching members adapt-,

ed to engage novel supporting members attached to the interior of the framing, the construction being such that the wall board can be easily placed and secured in position, as hereinafter explained.

of a building ventio Fig. 2 is an' enlarged detail vertical section of i In said drawings: v Fig. 1 is a fragmentary interior view wing various features of the inone part

the lower end of one of the uprights on line 2-4,

Fig, 1.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view through the inner part of the-wall showing the connecting devices in elevation and in section.

Fig. 4 is a face view of one of the supporting clips.

Fig. 5' is a side view' 'of'such clip and Fig. 6-

is an end view thereof.

' Fig. 'I is a detail view showing the clip with expanding pin, in position for attachment tov the wall board in full lines and, showing in dotted similar sectional view showing the "clip driven home after the exp Fig. 9 shows a clip attached to the wall board by screws.

Fig. 10 is a detail view showing the wall corner finish.

Fig. 11 is a sectional view on line lI-Il, Fig. 10.

Fig. 12 is a sectional View on line Fi 10.

Fig. 13 is a detail view of the corner finish.

Fig. 14 is a perspective sectional view of the corner finishing bracket on line I l-l4, Fig. 11.

Fig. 15 is a horizontal section of the. corner connections disconnected.

Fig. 16is a sectional view of a form of the connecting devices.

The framing of the building is preferably constructed as described in the aforesaid Ross application, and in brief comprises vertical studs (composed of channel irons, I, I, and bracing la), spaced apart and bolted to lower and upper channel irons 12, Ha. Attached to the exterior sides of the studs are parallel rows of supporting members 2, upon which the exterior wall blocks B are mounted as explained in said,Ross application. While our invention is especially designed for use with such framing, it is not lim ited thereto;

In applying our invention to buildings, we attach to the interior of the framing rows of wall board supporting members 9, arranged in horizontal parallel series and suitably spaced apart. These members may be applied both to the side walls and to the ceiling of the building as'indicated in Fig. 1.

Themembers 9 are preferably fastened to the studs l by the connections I, 8 as shown in Fig. 3 and described-in Ross application Serial No. 675,485, filed June 12, 1933, which matured in Patent #1,986,980 .on Jan. 8, 1935. The members may be either fastened direct to'th'e studs l, as shown in Fig 2 and 3, or may be spaced out from the channelsa distance equal to the thickness of an insulating sheet Ila. by means of washers 4, as shown in Fig. 16.

The members 9 are made of resilient metal strips. Each member has a base portion 9a (engaged by the fastening bolt I, Fig. 3) and upper and lowerflanges 9b which are inwardly inclined toward each other; and the extremities of the flanges are preferably formed with halfround beads as at 90. The flanges 9b are adapted to clamp, fasteners l0 attached to the wall board II and by which the wall board is sup-' ported on the members.

The interior wall board Ill-l2,

, Hlc of which are bent downwardly at substantially right angles, and are pronged or toothed as indicated in Fig. 5, so that'they can be forced into the wall board. At the junction of parts Illa and Nb are recesses 10d which are adapted to engage the beads of the members 9 when the fastener is engaged therewith, as shown in Figs.

- 2 and 3.

Before pressing the prongs of the fastener into the wall board, an expanding pin P (Fig. 7) is driven into the square shaped head Illa of the normal fastener shown in Fig. 6 and in dotted lines in Fig. 7, to expand the normal distance between the opposite prongs as shown in full lines in Fig. 7, and when thus-expanded the opposite prongs are approximately parallel. The fastener prongs are then pressed into the sheet of wall board by means of a plunger A (which is part of the equipment preferably used in attaching the fasteners to the wall board) and while the plunger is held depressed the expanding pin P is removed. When the pin P is removed the fastener tends to resume its contracted original shape (see dotted lines Fig. '7) and grips the wall board between the prongs with a vise-like grip. In some cases fasteners without prongs could be used and secured to thewall board by screws, as indicated in Fig. 9.

Two or more aligned fasteners should be attached to the wall board to engage each supporting member 9 throughout the length of the wall board. To secure the wall board to the members 9 the head's Illa of one row of fasteners are forced between the beads of the related member 9, so that the beads engage the shoulders Illd of the fasteners as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. After one row of fasteners has been engaged with a member 9 the other rows of fasteners can be engaged with the related members 9 throughout the height of the wall board. The wall board thus mounted on the members 9 can be slipped horizontally along the members to closely abut a previously applied adjacent wall board.

The vertical joints between two adjacent wall boards may be sealed by means of an .H-strip 2| as shown in Fig. 1. The exposed portion of this strip 2| may be finished in any color to suit the interior.

A further advantage of this assembly is the fact that the fasteners and members will not synchronize with sound vibrations; therefore this interior assembly will lessen the transmittal of sound through the walls.

Members 9 may also be fastened to the ceiling beams 25 to support ceiling wall board Ila, which is provided with fasteners ID in the same manner as the vertical wall board H.

At the corners the jointsbetween the ceiling and sides may be sealed by means of pre-fabricated molding l5, of suitable material (see Fig. 1); Strips l6 preferably of metal (Figs. 10-14) are placed behind the adjacent edges of the wall boards at the corners and may be held in place by means of clips I! and eye bolts l9, (Fig. 15) until the molding l5 has been slipped into place. The molding is provided with bayonet hooks l8 spaced along the molding in accordance with the spacing of eye bolts H! on strips IS. The molding 15 is placed between the adjacent edges of the ceiling and side wall boards, at the angles, and the hooks I8 can be engaged with the eye bolts 'l9 by moving the molding longitudinally, the length of the pieces of molding l5 permitting such movement.

The vertical joints between the side walls are similarly covered by molding l5a attached in the same manner as the ceiling molding l5. In the ceiling corners plates 23 (Fig. 1) are secured to cover the joints at the junction of the molding strips (15, I5, l5a).

At the base of the wall board along the floor, a metal base l3, (Figs. 1 and 2) may be used. This base 13 is fabricated of any suitable design in cross-section and may be attached to the adjacent members 9, by means of fasteners Him similar to fasteners Ill but having their sides extended sufficiently, as shown in Fig. 2, to enable them to be attached to the base and extend through the adjacent wall board II and engage the members 9. At the points where the fasteners Illa: are located (see Figs. 1 and 2) the wall board II is cut away or slotted as at Me to allow the fasteners to project therethrough. The ends of adjacent base boards, at the corners, are covered by stampings 22, Fig. 1, which also form a neat joint with the vertical molding 15a.

Our interior wall construction is hpplicable to either metal or wood buildings. The size of the room or area of the wall to be covered and the kind of wall board to be used being selected; the

requisite quantity of supporting members 9, andfasteners Ill, and other parts desired can be readily taken from stock and assembled as described. The members 9 can be applied to the interior of the building during the erection of the framing or afterwards as desired; and the,

wall and ceiling board and'finishing moldings can-thereafter be readily applied when desired.

The construction does not show nails, screws,

or other unsightly fasteners on the interior surfaces; and the advantages and utility of such interior finish will be apparent to architects and others familiar with building construction.

We claim;

1. In a corner finish for wall boards, anangu-- lar strip engaging the exterior of adjacent wall boards at thecorners of a room, and a molding applied to the interior of the wall boards at the corners thereof opposite said strip, means connectingthe molding to the strip to secure the molding in position and clamp the wall boards between the strip and molding, and means for holding the strip in place before the molding is connected to the strip. 4

2. In a corner finish as set forth in claim 1, said connecting means comprising eye bolts attached to the strip, and hook members attached to the molding engaging said eye bolts.

3. A fastening member comprising a strip having its central portion bent to form a substantially rectangular expansible head, adapted for engagement with a retaining member, and oppositely projecting flanges extending from the sides of the head; and means on the flanges adapted to be forcibly inserted into a wall board when the head is expanded to yieldably grip the wall board between the means and thereby connect the fastening member to the wall board.

4. A fastening member having a portion bent to form a. substantially rectangular expansible head adapted for engagement with a retaining member, and oppositely projecting flanges extending from the sides of the head, the outer ends of said flanges being bent downwardly at substantial Y right angles to the flanges and having prongs adapted to be forcibly inserted into a wall board to yieldably grip the wall board throughout the area embraced by the prongs and thereby connect the fastening member to the wall board.

5. A wall board fasteningmember, comprising a resilient strip bent to form a substantially rectangular head at its center and having oppositely projecting flanges extending from the sides of the head, the outer ends of said flanges having prongs adapted to be inserted into the wall board.

with means for expanding the head prior to and during the insertion of the prongs into the wall board, said means being removable after the prongs are inserted. I

6. A wall construction for buildings, comprising framing, a plurality of supporting members attached in parallel series to the framing members and having upper and lower converging flanges; boards, and fastening members attached to said boards having heads of greater maximum diameter than" the distance between the ends of the flanges of the supporting members, said head's being adapted to be engaged with the said supporting members to secure the boards in position.

7. Interior wall construction for buildings, comprising framing, a plurality of wall supporting members having upper and lower converging flanges attached in parallel series to the interior of'the framing, wall boards, and fastening members attached to said wall boards and having angularly bentheads of greater maximum diameter than the distance between the ends of the flanges of the supporting members adapted to be detachably engaged with the said supporting members to secure the wall boards in position.

8. In acorner finish for wall boards; an angular strip engaging the exterior surfaces of adjacent wall boards at the corners of a room; clips engaging the interior surfaces of the boards, means connecting the clips with the strip; a molding applied to the interior of the wall boards opposite the strip; and means independent of the clips for connecting the molding with the strip.

9. In a corner finish as set forth in claim 8, said molding connecting gneans comprising eyes on the strip and wedge members on the molding engaging 'said eyes.

10. Ina corner finish for wall boards, an angular strip engaging the exterior surfaces of adjacent wall boards at the corners of a room, clips engaging .the interior surfaces of the boards,

members connecting the clips with the strip; and a molding applied to the interior of the wall boards opposite the strip and readily detachably connected with the said strip.

11. In a corner finish as set forth in claim 10, said readily detachable connection comprising eyes on the strip, and hook members on the molding engaging said eyes. I

12. In an interior comer finish for wall boards, an angular strip engaging the exterior surface of adjacent wall boards at the corners of a room, clips pivotally mounted on the strips and engaging the interior surfaces of the boards, a preformed molding applied to the interior of the wall boards opposite the strip; and means for readily detachably connecting the molding with the strip.

13. In a corner finish as set forth in claim 12; said readily detachable connection comprising eyes on the interior surface of the strip, and wedge hook members on the molding engaging said eyes when the molding is shifted along the boards.

14. In an interior corner finish for wall boards, an angular strip engaging the exterior surfaces of adjacent wall boards at the corners of a room, clips pivotally mounted on the strips and engag ing the interior surfaces of the boards, the pivots comprising bolts having eyes exposed on the interior of the room; a preformed moldingapplied to the interior of the wall boards opposite the strip; and hook members on the molding engaging said eyes when the molding is shifted along the boards.

15. In an interior wall construction for buildings; framing; a plurality of prefabricated supporting members attached to the framing; prefabricated wall boards carried by the supporting members; and prefabricated moldings carried by the wall boards and covering the joints between wall boards at the angles of the room.

16. In an interior wall construction for buildings; framing; a plurality of prefabricated supporting members attached to the framing; prefabricated wall boards carried by the supporting members; prefabricated moldings carried by the wall boards and'covering the joints between wall boards at the angles of the room; and prefabri cated corner plates at the junctionsof the moldmgs.

17. In an interior wall-construction for buildings; framing; a plurality of prefabricated supporting members attachedto the framing; prefabricated wall boards carried by the supporting members; prefabricated moldings carried by the wall boards and covering the joints between wall boards at the angles of the room; prefabricated corner plates at the junctions of the moldings; and prefabricated base boards at'the lower edges of the walls carried by the supporting members.

DAVID E. "Ross. noors M.- ALT.\. 

